SUCCESS STORIES

We give jobs to unemployed youth from the slums to sell life-changing products so they can earn an honest living.

“Before I joined as an iSmart sales agent, you can’t imagine, you guys. I was one of the street boys there in the streets.” -Alex Govinda

“My name is Alex Govinda. I’m an iSmart sales agent. Before I joined as an iSmart sales agent, you can’t imagine, you guys. I was one of the street boys there in the streets. It was hard for me to get food there in the streets. We were collecting scraps to get food, snatching, but now since I’ve joined iSmart my life has really changed. Now I can earn money, through selling, through working hard, through selling products to the community. Now we’re selling things that bring impact to the lives of people living in the community. When I was living in the street, life was really hard. I was in many organizations – rehab centers [rehabilitation centers for street kids], orphanages. But nothing was working for me. There they gave you fish, but they didn’t show you how to fish the fish. Before I joined iSmart, I didn’t have any skills in business. But through iSmart they gave me the skills of selling. Now I’m able to sell. Through how I sell products to the community, a lot of people in the community can’t imagine that I used to live in the street. They see a big change and how LivelyHoods has really changed my life. I’m happy because I’m trying to imagine how we’ll grow big in 3 or 5 years to come because our aim is to reach many youth on the streets.”

“I’m making my own money, I’m able to take care of myself…” -Maureen Adhiambo

“My name is Maureen Adhiambo. I work with iSmart as a sales agent. I’m making my own money, I’m able to take care of myself, and at iSmart, we also learn a lot. Before LivelyHoods, I worked sometimes in a video library and I was just staying at home. I was looking for a job for like two years before I found LivelyHoods. With LivelyHoods, besides just working and earning money for my daily upkeep, it’s directed me to achieve my long-term goal. Like for me, I’ve always dreamed of going to college and I know with LivelyHoods I will achieve that. I can save some money to go to college even. I want to study business administration, or things to do with business, so that maybe I’ll be able to work for LivelyHoods or I can just run my own business when I have the capital. In ten years, I will have achieved my goal and will be somewhere doing some big business. LivelyHoods will maybe have been expanded and maybe I’ll be running of the LivelyHoods branches, somewhere in Kangemi or Kayole, or other parts of Nairobi. LivelyHoods is helping me achieve my dreams and my long-term goals. LivelyHoods is really growing very quickly and I hope that it grows even bigger to continue helping more youths.”